System for injecting protocol specific errors during the certification of components in a storage area network

ABSTRACT

An apparatus comprising an initiator circuit and a target circuit. The initiator circuit may be configured to (i) communicate with a network through a first interface and (ii) generate testing sequences to be sent to the network. The target circuit may be configured to (i) receive the testing sequences from the network through a second network interface and (ii) respond to the testing sequences.

This application relates to U.S. Ser. No. 12/983,996, filed Jan. 4,2011, which is a continuation of International ApplicationPCT/US2008/009972, with an International Filing Date of Aug. 21, 2008,which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/080,806,filed Jul. 15, 2008, each of which is incorporated by reference in theirentirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to storage arrays generally and, moreparticularly, to a method and/or apparatus for implementing a system forthe injection of protocol specific errors used during the certificationof components in a storage area network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conventional drive arrays do not offer tools that can inject errors inan Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI) protocol format.Some tools are available for other protocols, such as Fibre Channel.However, a Fibre Channel tool needs a separate analyzer, which can beexpensive.

Such an analyzer is placed between an initiator and a target device.Using the analyzer, the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sent from the initiatorto the target will be intercepted. Some bits in the PDU stack will bemodified to introduce errors in the response. One conventional approachfor error injection uses a Finisar Xgig protocol analyzer (availablefrom Finisar Corporation of Sunnyvale Calif.) between the initiator andtarget connectivity.

Disadvantages with such an error injection system include (i) extra costinvolved in the Finisar Analyzer, (ii) the need for a protocol expert tolocate the required bit and to vary the bit, (iii) the extra spaceand/or cabling needed, (iv) the inability to operate on a remote setup,(v) the need for an extra PC/Laptop to monitor and modify the Analyzer,and/or (vi) the need for tapping the data to modify and resend it maycause some delay in transmission. Even with such a hardware device, auser is not able to inject iSCSI errors. Such a device is not able toprovide iSCSI jammer functions.

It would be desirable to implement a system for injecting protocolspecific errors (e.g., iSCSI) during the certification of an iSCSIcomponents in a storage area network.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns an apparatus comprising an initiatorcircuit and a target circuit. The initiator circuit may be configured to(i) communicate with a network through a first interface and (ii)generate testing sequences to be sent to the network. The target circuitmay be configured to (i) receive the testing sequences from the networkthrough a second network interface and (ii) respond to the testingsequences.

The objects, features and advantages of the present invention includeproviding a test system that may (i) inject errors in a PDU, (ii) beimplemented without a dedicated hardware device, (iii) be implementedwithout a protocol expert to monitor the traffic, (iv) be implementedwithout a separate PC/Laptop for monitoring and modifying the PDUresponse, (v) be implemented without tapping the network traffic, (vi)avoid delays, (vii) automate the testing process, (viii) provide an easyto use system even if the test is executed manually, (ix) be implementedin software, (x) allow efficient feature and enhancement upgradesthrough software, (xi) provide design and debugging flexibility, and/or(xii) allow modification of a fault injection to stay compatible withfuture protocol releases and/or versions without the cost of updatinghardware.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following detailed description andthe appended claims and drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a more detailed diagram of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The certification of an internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI)array controller uses tools which allow the injection of protocol. Theinvention concerns the introduction (or injection) of protocol specificerrors in a PDU directly from within an existing component, such as aninitiator. In one example, the present invention may be implemented as asoftware module implemented within such an existing component. Theerrors may be used to validate whether a target, such as an arraycontroller, responds and recovers properly from infected erroneous datainputs. Such responses may be implemented without causing one or more ofthe following (i) unexpected/unaccepted errors, (ii) data corruption,(iii) loss of access to data, (iv) I/O Errors, (v) I/O timeouts, (vi)array controller hang ups and/or (vi) other errors.

The present invention may provide a system for injecting errors in aProtocol Data Unit (PDU) that may be performed at the PDU generationstage. The present invention may avoid tapping the data betweentransmissions and/or may avoid modifying the data. By using a softwareinitiator, the protocol specific errors may be injected in the PDUswhile the PDUs are being generated.

Referring to FIG. 1, a block diagram of a system 100 is shown inaccordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Thesystem 100 illustrates error injection during generation of PDU. Thesystem 100 generally comprises a block (or circuit) 102, a block (orcircuit) 104, a block (or circuit) 106, a block (or circuit) 108, ablock (or circuit) 109 and a network 110. The circuit 102 may beimplemented as an initiator circuit. The circuit 104 may be implementedas a host circuit. The circuit 106 may be implemented as a networkdevice, such as a hub, regulator, switch, etc. In one example, thecircuit 106 may be implemented as a fibre channel switch. An example ofsuch a switch may be found in co-pending application Ser. No.61/080,762, Filed Jul. 15, 2008, which is incorporated by reference inits entirety. In one example, the circuit 108 may be implemented as astorage (or drive) enclosure. In one example, the circuit 109 may beimplemented as a storage (or drive) enclosure. The network 110 may beimplemented as an Ethernet network.

The circuit 102 is shown connected to the network 110 through an IPconnection (e.g., 192.168.20.21). The particular IP address may bevaried for the particular network environment. Similarly, the device 104is shown having an IP connection (e.g., 192.168.20.34) and an IPconnection (e.g., 192.168.20.33). The IP address 33 and the IP address34 may provide a multi-path connection from the device 104 to thenetwork 110. The device 104 may also connect to the network 110 throughthe switch 106 and the circuit 102.

In one example, the system 100 may use an iSCSI software initiator 102.However, other protocol specific initiators may be implemented to meetthe design criteria of a particular implementation. In an iSCSIenvironment, a /PROC virtual file system may be implemented to injecterror during PDU generation. The “/” generally indicates a directorystructure and the “PROC” generally indicates a directory name. Theparticular name may be varied to meet the design criteria of aparticular implementation. In one example, such a virtual file systemmay be implemented in a Linux operation system. However, other operatingsystems may be implemented to meet the design criteria of a particularimplementation. By modifying the values in the PROC file system, whichthe iSCSI initiator 102 uses while generating PDU, the system 100 mayinject one or more errors into the PROC file system. The errors may becontrolled in a manner useful for testing the way a particular networkenvironment reacts to actual errors. The controlled errors may be usedfor testing prior to setting the network to a “live” state. The PDUtransmission may be logged in the host circuit 104 which may be used forfurther analysis.

The complete testing using error injection may be automated using ashell/expect script. Automation of such scripts may contain details suchas (i) Internet Protocol (IP) address of Initiator and Target, (ii) PortNumber for communication [e.g., default 3260], (iii) Logon credentials(if needed), and/or (iv) values to be varied in PROC entry etc.

System specifications may include (i) Linux machine with 2.6 kernel asthe initiator host 104, (ii) development packages installed in the host104, (iii) a software initiator with error injection module, (iv) a NIC(Network Interface Card) port to connect to the initiator 102, (v)support for shell/expect script, and/or (vi) if a firewall is present,communication through the specified port should be enabled.

Referring to FIG. 2, a more detailed diagram of the initiator target 100is shown. The initiator 102 generally comprises a block (or circuit) 111and a block (or circuit) 112. The circuit 111 may be implemented as atesting section (or circuit). The circuit 111 generally comprises ablock (or circuit) 114, a block (or circuit) 116 and a block (orcircuit) 118. The circuit 112 may be implemented as a script circuit.The circuit 114 may be implemented as a PROC circuit. The circuit 116may be implemented as a kernel circuit. The circuit 118 may beimplemented as a user circuit.

The initiator 102 may have an input/output 120 and an input/output 122.The inputs/outputs 120 and 122 may generate a signal ERROR_FLOW. Theprotocol specific errors generated by the initiator 102 may be includedin the signal ERROR_FLOW. The signal ERROR_FLOW may be presented (orconnected) from input/output 120 to the input/output 128. The signalERROR_FLOW may also be presented (or connected) from input/output 122 tothe input/output 130. The input/output 120 may be connected to theinput/output 128 by a network cable 124. The input/output 122 may beconnected to the input/output 122 by the network cable 126. In oneexample, the network cable 124 and the network cable 126 may beimplemented as Fibre channel cables (or links). However, other types oflinks may be implemented to meet the design criteria of a particularimplementation.

The host circuit 104 generally comprises an input/output 140 and aninput/output 142. The signal ERROR_FLOW may be presented (or connected)from the input/output 132 to the input/output 140. The signal ERROR_FLOWmay be presented (or connected) from the input/output 134 to theinput/output 142. The input/output 132 may be connected to theinput/output 140 by a network cable 136. The input/output 134 may beconnected to the input/output 142 by the network cable 138. In oneexample, the network cable 136 and the network cable 138 may beimplemented as Fibre channel cables (or links). However, other types oflinks may be implemented to meet the design criteria of a particularimplementation.

Referring to FIG. 3, a flow diagram 300 is shown. The flow diagram 300generally comprises a step (or state) 302, a step (or state) 304, a step(or state) 306, a step (or state) 308, a step (or state) 310, a step (orstate) 312 and a step (or state) 314. The step 302 provides ashell/expect script that would be created with the required value tochange in the PROC entries. The state 304 determines that once thescript is executed the PROC value will be changed. The step 306determines that while generating PDU, the initiator 102 will look intothe PROC entries to acquire the key equal to the value pairs of the PDU.The step 308 determines that the PROC entry contains the value which wasset by the script, hence the PDU generated contains the erroneous value.The step 310 determines that the PDU will be sent to the target 104. Thestep 312 determines that upon receiving the erroneous value from theinitiator 102 the target 104 should respond properly for the erroneousvalue. The step 314 determines when to certify whether the target 104responded properly for the erroneous value received from the initiator102. The iSCSI services are normally started in both the initiator 102and target 104.

The system 100 may inject errors in the PDU response without tapping theoriginal communication. Various values PROC entries may be charged. Forexample, “Active Version Change, CHAP (Challenge HandshakeAuthentication Protocol) A, CHAP C Length, Delay PDU response, Drop PDU,Drop Connection, Inject Digest Error, under run, over run, CRC error,reset, etc.” The system 100 may be used to provide error injection evenon a remote setup using the switch 106.

The present invention may be extended to inject errors in softwaretarget 104 which enables testing of the initiator 102. Such animplementation may simulate erroneous conditions at initiator 102, bymodifying the PDU values to obtain the expected result. The presentinvention may work with any device capable of sending iSCSI request PDUsand receiving iSCSI response PDUs. The present invention may be expandedto inject errors in a target for testing the initiator 102. The presentinvention may be implemented with any iSCSI target devices (e.g., iSCSIControllers, key iSCSI software targets, etc.) that need to be tested.Other protocols (e.g., other than iSCSI) may also be implemented.

The function performed by the software module of FIG. 3 may beimplemented using a conventional general purpose digital computerprogrammed according to the teachings of the present specification, aswill be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art(s). Appropriatesoftware coding can readily be prepared by skilled programmers based onthe teachings of the present disclosure, as will also be apparent tothose skilled in the relevant art(s).

The present invention may also be implemented by the preparation ofASICs, FPGAs, or by interconnecting an appropriate network ofconventional component circuits, as is described herein, modificationsof which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art(s).

The present invention thus may also include a computer product which maybe a storage medium including instructions which can be used to programa computer to perform a process in accordance with the presentinvention. The storage medium can include, but is not limited to, anytype of disk including floppy disk, optical disk, CD-ROM,magneto-optical disks, ROMs, RAMS, EPROMs, EEPROMs, Flash memory,magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storingelectronic instructions.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may bemade without departing from the scope of the invention.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An apparatus comprising: an initiatorcircuit configured to (i) communicate with a network, (ii) generate aplurality of testing sequences from a plurality of values stored in afile, (iii) create one or more errors in said testing sequences byaltering said file and (iv) transmit said file including said testingsequences on said network; and a target circuit configured to (i)receive said file including said testing sequences from said network,(ii) generate a plurality of responses to said testing sequences and(iii) transmit said responses on said network to said initiator circuit,wherein said initiator circuit is further configured to verify that saidtarget properly responded to said errors in said testing sequences. 2.The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said target circuitcomprises a RAID controller.
 3. The apparatus according to claim 1,wherein said initiator circuit comprises a testing section configured to(i) generate said testing sequences in a first state and (ii) generateerror-free sequences from said values in a second state.
 4. Theapparatus according to claim 1, wherein said errors introduced in saidtesting sequences comprise protocol specific error sequences configuredto simulate protocol specific errors.
 5. The apparatus according toclaim 4, wherein said protocol specific errors simulate errors in anetwork environment.
 6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein saidnetwork environment comprises a fibre channel network.
 7. The apparatusaccording to claim 4, wherein said protocol specific errors comprisesimulated errors in an Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI)protocol.
 8. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said protocolspecific errors simulate errors that are remotely generated.
 9. Theapparatus according to claim 1, wherein said initiator circuit includesa software module configured to generate said errors in said file priorto generation of said testing sequences.
 10. The apparatus according toclaim 9, wherein said software module is updatable.
 11. The apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein said file is generated in a virtualdirectory structure compatible with a specific operating system.
 12. Theapparatus according to claim 11, wherein said specific operating systemcomprises a Linux operating system.
 13. An apparatus comprising: meansfor communicating with a network; means for generating a plurality oftesting sequences from a plurality of values stored in a file; means forcreating one or more errors in said testing sequences by altering saidfile; means for transmitting said file including said testing sequenceson said network; means for receiving said file including testingsequences from said network; means for generating a plurality ofresponses to said testing sequences; means for transmitting saidresponses on said network to said means for communicating with saidnetwork; and means for verifying that said means for receiving saidtesting sequences properly responded to said errors in said testingsequences.
 14. A method for testing via a network comprising the stepsof: (A) communicating with said network with an initiator circuit; (B)generating a plurality of testing sequences from a plurality of valuesstored in a file within said initiator circuit; (C) creating one or moreerrors in said testing sequences by altering said file; (D) transmittingsaid file including said testing sequences on said network; (E)receiving said file including testing sequences from said network of atarget circuit; (F) generating a plurality of responses to said testingsequences; (G) transmitting said responses on said network to saidinitiator circuit; and (H) verifying that said method properly respondedto said errors in said testing sequences by said initiator circuit. 15.The method according to claim 14, wherein said errors introduced in saidtesting sequences simulate protocol specific errors.
 16. The methodaccording to claim 14, wherein said errors are included in an initialgeneration of said testing sequences.
 17. The method according to claim14, further comprising the step of: executing a software module in saidinitiator circuit to generate said errors in said file prior togeneration of said testing sequences.
 18. The method according to claim14, wherein said testing sequences are generated in a first state, themethod further comprising the step of: generating error-free sequencesfrom said values with said initiator circuit in a second state.
 19. Themethod according to claim 18, further comprising the steps of:generating a plurality of response sequences in response to saiderror-free sequences with said target circuit; and creating one or moreresponse errors in said response sequences.
 20. The method according toclaim 19, further comprising the steps of: transmitting said responsesequences to said initiator circuit; and verifying if said initiatorcircuit properly handles said response errors in said responsesequences.